Atishi video not doctored, will order CBI probe, says Speaker as row escalates

Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta on Saturday said a forensic examination has found that a video of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi allegedly making derogatory remarks against Sikh gurus in the House was not doctored and a CBI probe will be ordered into the matter.

Addressing a press conference, Mr. Gupta said he would also seek a CBI inquiry into the ongoing probe into the video by the Punjab government.

He said a forensic investigation ordered by him into the original footage from the Assembly showed that the video “was not tampered with”. The Speaker urged Ms. Atishi to apologise to the House for her alleged remarks.

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said the forensic report confirmed that the video from January 6, when Ms. Atishi allegedly made a “shameful, undignified” remark, was “100% correct” and “untampered”.

She accused the Opposition party of “misusing” the Punjab government, police, and forensic lab to “cover up the truth”.

Ms. Atishi’s comments in the House had triggered a political storm, with the BJP alleging that she made derogatory remarks about Guru Tegh Bahadur.

Earlier this week, a Jalandhar court had ordered the alleged doctored video to be taken down from social media platforms.

Labour Minister Kapil Mishra, who shared the video online, said the forensic report established the “sin” committed by Ms. Atishi and accused AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal of committing a “bigger sin” by “misusing Punjab Police to protect her”.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said the forensic report shows that Ms. Atishi “did not say anything like that and he [Mr. Mishra] put subtitles on the video and insulted the gurus”. “The court has ordered that the video be removed from social media. But if the BJP believes that the CBI is above it, then it should order a CBI probe as well,” he said.

‘Fanning discord’

AAP demanded that Mr. Mishra be sentenced to three years in jail for “disrespecting” the Sikh gurus by posting a “fake” video.

Delhi AAP president Saurabh Bharadwaj rejected the forensic report from Delhi, saying it did not address the key issue. “She [Atishi] did not utter the word ‘gurus’, but the report does not mention it. The BJP tried to fan religious discord by using the video,” he said.

‘Serious consequences’

The Speaker said on Saturday that the Jalandhar court’s order was only interim, adding that it lacked jurisdiction to impose “sweeping restrictions” across digital platforms.

Urging Ms. Atishi to come forward and meet him, Mr. Gupta said, “If not, there will be serious consequences… I’m giving a chance to her to apologise… I’m warning the Punjab Chief Minister not to interfere in the proceedings of the House.”

Meanwhile, Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal wrote to Mr. Gupta seeking Ms. Atishi’s disqualification as MLA and the registration of an FIR, saying her remarks had “deeply hurt the religious sentiments of the Sikh community”.

(With inputs from PTI)